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Caverns of the Snow Witch (book)
﻿ :For other uses of '''Caverns of the Snow Witch', see'' Caverns of the Snow Witch (disambiguation) Caverns of the Snow Witch single-player role-playing gamebook, written by Ian Livingstone, illustrated by Gary Ward and Edward Crosby and originally published in 1984 by Puffin Books. It was later republished by Wizard Books in 2003. It forms part of Steve Jackson and Ian Livingstone's Fighting Fantasy series. It is the 9th in the series in the original Puffin series (ISBN 0-14-031830-5) and 10th in the modern Wizard series (ISBN 1-84046-432-1). Creation A short version of the adventure was first published in Warlock Issue 2 (as a Mini-FF)The "Fighting Fantasy News" section however makes it clear like the adventure (and House of Hell which followed it) was always planned as a gamebook and simply shortened and modified for use in the magazine: They were originally intended to be the next two gamebooks, but we decided to give readers a taste of what was to come by publishing shortened versions in the magazine. The full adventures, which are very different from the Warlock versions – and twice as long – have been completed. ( - 4). It was made up of 190 references and Livingstone later expanded the adventure to create the final bookSpeaking of the gamebook version: It extends the adventure beyond killing the Snow Witch: in effect there is a new mini-adventure in addition to the original one. ( - 4). Background The book is split into three distinct parts. In the first part, the reader is hired to kill a Yeti that has been disrupting trade routes in the Icefinger Mountains of Allansia. After killing the Yeti, the player finds a dying trapper who tells him of the great riches to be found in the caverns of the Snow Witch, an Evil sorceress who dwells in the mountains. The player sets off to investigate the caverns, meeting up with two other adventurers along the way: Redswift the Elf and Stubb the Dwarf. The three companions infiltrate the caverns, fight their way through guards and monsters, and kill the Snow Witch. In the second part, the three of them must escape the caverns while being pursued by the Snow Witch's minions. Along the way they encounter many traps, several guards and even the spirit of the late Snow Witch herself. In the third part, the three escape from the caverns and return to civilised, temperate parts of Allansia, only to find that the Snow Witch has cast a Death Spell on them, which they will slowly succumb to. After Redswift perishes, the reader must seek out Pen Ty Kora, a reclusive healing wizard, to cure him of the spell, while his stamina score gradually dwindles away. If the reader has certain items from the Snow Witch's cavern, and can pass a series of ordeals, he will be cured of the spell and successfully complete the gamebook. Fighting Monsters/Equipment and Potions/Hints on Play The book in general follows the original rules set down in The Warlock of Firetop Mountain. (see Game System) Equipment List *Sword *Leather Armour *Backpack *10 Provisions *Choice of one of three Potions (see Game System for generic fantasy setting choices) Cover and Illustrations '''Covers The original cover of the book was designed and illustrated by Les Edwards. When the book was republished by Wizard a new cover was designed and illustrated by Les Edwards. There were some changes made between his initial sketch and the finished version: #Price of 1st~2nd Impressions; £1.95 for 6th Impression #Price of 8th Impression '''Illustrations' The interior illustrations were by Gary Ward and Edward Crosby. There were 32 full page illustrations and 5 minor repeated illustrations scattered throughout the text. The paragraphs with a full page illustration were: Background, 13, 26, 37, 50, 59, 75, 83, 88, 96, 106, 115, 125, 154, 168, 180, 190, 198, 212, 223, 235, 254, 262, 278, 288, 297, 319, 328, 348, 365, 374 and 398. Intertextual References Sequels Whilst Caverns of the Snow Witch was originally the ninth book in the series, it is the chronological prequel of The Forest of Doom, the third book. The quest for King Gillibran's war hammer, which is the basis of the plot of The Forest of Doom, begins in this book. Also - depending on reader interpretation - Temple of Terror forms a further sequel. Other Media *Clarecraft made a figurine of Shareella called The Snow Witch in 1986 (re-released in 2004), as part of an officially licensed series of Fighting Fantasy Ornaments.The name Shareella, for this ornament was confirmed in the 25th Anniversary Edition of - ???, although the original model was simply called The Snow Witch d20 System Conversion There is a D20 System conversion by Myriador called Caverns of the Snow Witch. Main Characters YOU: Hero of Caverns of the Snow Witch *Ash - Wood Elf *Big Jim Sun - Merchant *Bigleg - Dwarf *King Gillibran - Dwarf *Minstrel *Morri Silverheart - Dwarf/Ironsmith *Pen Ty Kora - Wizard *Redswift - Wood Elf *Shareella - Sorceress/The Snow Witch/Vampire *Stubb - Dwarf *The Healer Locations *Crystal Caves *Darkwood Forest *Deathtrap Dungeon *Fang *Firetop Mountain *Icefinger Mountains *Moonstone Hills *Pagan Plains *Red River *River Kok *Stonebridge Encounters *Banshee *Barbarians *Bird-Man *Brain Slayer *Cave-Man *Centaur *Crystal Warrior *Death Hawk *Dwarf *Elf *Frost Giant *Goblins *Hill Trolls *Hobgoblin *Humans - Axeman/Knight *Ice Demon *Mammoth *Man-Orc *Mountain Elf *Neanderthal *Night Stalker *Ninja *Sentinel *Snow Wolves *Werewolf *White Dragon *Wild Hill Man *Yeti *Zombie - Dwarf/Elf/Regular Further Notes *24 instant failures, 1 victory, plus death by Stamina loss or bad Luck. *The original publication of this adventure, in Warlock magazine came with different illustrations that were by Duncan Smith. Errors *When you meet the Crystal Warrior the player is asked if they possess a warhammer. If they do, they must proceed to battle the creature. If they don't, they are sent to another section and asked whether they have a Genie friend who can help them to avoid the fight, which means avoiding any loss of time or stamina. So bringing the warhammer along is actually a penalty. Dedication Puffin Edition For Dave, John, Maurice, Rob, Skye and Steve of the Lads' Night Inn Wizard Edition For Hannah See Also *''Dicing with Dragons'' *''Fighting Fantasy'' Reviews *[http://user.tninet.se/~wcw454p/docs/ff9.txt Caverns of the Snow Witch at FF Reviews Archive] External Links *Character Sheet *[http://www.gamebooks.org/show_series.php?id=11 Fighting Fantasy at Gamebooks.org] *[http://www.gamebooks.org/show_series.php?name=Fighting+Fantasy+Reissues Fighting Fantasy (Wizard Series) at Gamebooks.org] *[http://www.gamebooks.org/show_item.php?id=46 Caverns of the Snow Witch at Gamebooks.org] *[http://web.archive.org/web/20051127132124/www.fightingfantasy.com/ffb9.htm Caverns of the Snow Witch at the Internet Archive record of the old Fightingfantasy.com] *[http://www.fightingfantasygamebooks.com/ff10.htm Caverns of the Snow Witch at the official Fightingfantasygamebooks.com] *[http://www.iconbooks.co.uk/wizard/wbook.cfm?isbn=1-84046-432-1 Caverns of the Snow Witch at Wizard Books] References Category:1984 books Category:FF09 Entries Category:Fighting Fantasy Original Series Category:Fighting Fantasy Wizard Series